INK
by Hunter of the Wild
Summary: Inspired by prompt. Person A receives two magical pens that allow one way communication; words written by the other pen appear on any and all surfaces visible to A. Person A misplaces one of the pens and Person B winds up finding it. But soon, beautiful stories, poems and drawings start to appear. Slowly but surely, A falls in love with Person B. TeruMob
1. Introduction

Hanazawa Teruki was not particularly interested in art nor history. He didn't see the use in dwelling on things that were intangible or had already happened. Why would he spend the time he had when he wasn't doing home work or club activities to learn more? He was definitely a typical college student, preferring to spend his time sleeping or watching Netflix, something that didn't require a lot of brain power. He whiled his time away with meaningless tasks, _all completed to perfection of course_ , and enjoyed his long lasting popularity with the other students and basically anyone he talked to, at least that's what he believed. But, family was important to Teruki, never mind that he never listened to his them talk about – _the family traditions and history must be upheld, Teruki!_ \- stuff.

So when his grandfather told him there was an emergency, very conspicuously leaving out what exactly that emergency _was,_ Teru rushed to help. It wouldn't do to not be a great grandson, after all, he aspired to be the perfect example of whatever he chose to be.

That lead to Teru watching his grandfather with an incredulous expression. They were sat in the middle of the small house his grandfather had built eons ago; Teru couldn't exactly remember when. The wooden floors creaked with age, interrupting the silence that spread through the empty house. His knees already felt quite numb from how long he'd been sitting there, waiting for the elderly man to explain exactly what the emergency was. "You called me all the way home to give me this?" His tone was confused, and yet slightly amused. He looked down at his palm, which still cradled the gift.

Two pens.

He'd been asked to come back from university, take a 5 hour long train ride, take a bus and hike up the mountain to where his hermit of a grandpa lived, all to be confronted with two pens? _Gramps must be kidding._ He very much loved the old man, but this had him either laughing or crying, he wasn't sure yet. "Oh man.", he sighed softly, shaking his head with a fond smile. "Thanks a bunch, Gramps. I'll make sure to look after them." Teru carefully set the pens down, not yet taking a closer look. There couldn't possibly be something special about two pens, right? Thoughts drifting to different topics, Teru turned his attention back to the expectant face of his grandfather. Watchful, dark eyes stared at him from the deeply lined face, a broad toothy smile on the man's lips. "I thought it was time for you to inherit them! They still work, y'know!" His grandfather laughed loudly, standing up from his own position on thr ground and motioned for Teru to follow. "C'mon, let's go say hi to your grandmother! I think she's been lonely ever since you left!"

Teru couldn't argue with that. "Yeah, let's. She's probably fed up with seeing you every day."

The other man scoffed and replied, "Well, she at least choose to see me every day, she was just saddled with you!"

Both clapping each other on the backs, they made their way out of the room, crossing the doorway into the garden, where the grave of his grandmother lied.

–

"Hanazawa! How come you missed class?"

The loud voice of his lecturer made his ears ring and he contained an exasperated sigh. _Of course they'd notice me missing._ The thought was half smug, half annoyed.

"There was a family emergency, Sir. I had to go back home."

It wasn't a lie, but a somewhat stretched truth. His grandfather had indeed needed help with some repair work and Teru did end staying for a few days, nostalgia preventing him from leaving. They talked a lot – _so, when are you finally getting a girlfriend?!_ \- and fought – _get off my back about that, ya old man!_ \- but, as Teru realized on his way back home, the old man forgot to actually explained why he gifted the two pens to Teru and exactly what they even symbolized.

The lecturer frowned, creating deep lines in his otherwise smooth face. "I know this subject is just an elective for you, Hanazawa, but please try to take it seriously."

Teru supressed an eye roll, and yet nodded in agreement. He did have a reputation to uphold – he was always first in whatever he attempted, this subject would not be an exemption. "Yes, Reigen-sensei."

The man nodded in acceptance and continued with taking attendance. The rest of the class tittered in the background as Teru settled down in his seat. He wasn't actually interested in the course material, this was simply a way for him to gain extra credits, to improve his standing among his peers. _Literature_ , he mused. Personally, he didn't see the use in it. _Shakespeare, Homer, Jane Austen..._ These people were all long dead. Would they at least talk about something that was at least more recent? Taking stock of the people around him, Teru didn't see anyone that stuck out in particular. A few pretty girls here and there, but...

He sighed, but smiled lazily a few of the girls he saw looking at him, smile widening when he saw them blush prettily. _Ah, women. Such beautiful creatures._

"Kurata Tome?"

"Here!"

"Kageyama Shigeo?"

The silence in the room continued, Reigen-sensei looking expectantly at someone seated towards the back of the lecture theatre. Snickers and giggles filled the room as the lecturer silently palmed his face.

" _Kageyama Shigeo?"_

Teru craned his neck around to look. The loud noise had startled the day dreamer who unsteadily stood up and opened his mouth to respond. Teru could see the pink rise to the guy's cheeks and the gaping mouth. No sound left his open mouth however. _Yikes._ In the midst of all the laughter, the poor guy sat down again, eyes covered by black bangs. Reigen-sensei sighed, shaking his head with an exasperated sigh. "At least try to stay awake, Mob."

 _Mob? What a weird nickname._

And so the class continued and Teru continued his silent attempts at flirtations with the cute girls he spotted earlier.

–

Just as the class finished, the girls sashayed towards Teru, giggling daintily. One of them, obviously the ring leader, was pushed to the front. It was obvious what they wanted and Teru fished around his bag for a pen and a piece of paper. Grasping one, vaguely recognizing it as one of the pens his grandfather gave him, he pulled it out with a flourish.

"So, who's number can I have?"

Needless to say, he left with all of their phone numbers. He was so smug and distracted that he left the pen behind on the table, chatting with the group of girls around him and confidently strutting towards his next lecture.

However, perhaps thankfully, someone picked it up.

"What a beautiful fountain pen..."

–

Teru realized his mistake very late, just as he settled down to do his work.

 _Oh fuck._

He had lost one of the pens his grandfather gave him literally a day into his normal, daily routine.

 _Grandma is going to haunt me._

 _Scratch that, Gramps is going to fucking kill me._

His future murder looming over him like an angry shadow, Teru frantically searched through his bag. Finding one of the pens didn't take long, but the other was nowhere in sights. Ignoring his own rampant thoughts of his imminent death, he took a deep breath and for the first time, actually took a closer look at the remaining pen.

This one was a deep, dark ebony, with sleek lines and carvings that seemed to show the inner parts of the pen. It glistened in the light and Teru felt a pang at the loss of the other. What did it even look like? Cursing his own stupidity for once, he racked his brain for the last time and first time he'd used the pen.

His mind racing, his eyes scanned the room, looking for a possible resolution to this _spectacular fuck up_. The black writing on his ceiling seemed new, but it wouldn't help him now. Gazing back down at the pen in his hands, his brain suddenly shuddered to a halt.

 _Wait._

 _Writing._

 _On my ceiling?!_

His head snapped upwards so fast, he swore he heard a bone crack. And there it was, proudly sprawled all over the corner of the ceiling, a beautiful mess of loping curls and swirls, as if someone was trying out the ink.

 _What the actual fuck._

Staring at the ink, Teru couldn't think of any reason as to why it would be there. Mind blank, he fetched the ladder and cleaning equipment, ready to remove the stain on his otherwise clean ceiling. Carefully stepping up the steps, he set to wiping the black curls off. Even as he continued to wipe, they refused to come off. As if possessed, Teru wiped _again and again and why wouldn't this shitstain come off, what the everloving fuck_.

It was not a good evening for Hanazawa Teruki.

Even as he scrubbed away furiously, more marks started to appear. Grunting in dissatisfaction and very clear annoyance, Teru stepped down the ladder, mind already set on getting the hammer, when he slipped and fell to the floor.

Loud and clear curses left his mouth, words that would have made his grandmother gasp and his grandfather laugh.

 _I swear to..._

His thought trailed off as he looked at the ceiling from his position on the floor.

 _Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light;  
I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night. _

The words were written in a beautiful, loping cursive. The inky blackness of the words contrasted against the stark whiteness of his ceiling. Teru read the words, mouthing them and finally reading them out loud. They fell from his tongue with a slow caress, words dripping like honey. The words were beautiful and the surrealness of them appearing on his living room ceiling made them all the more special. Blankly staring at the words, it took but a moment for Teru to burst out in hysterical laughter.

–

On a mountain, exactly five hours train ride, a bus ride and a hike away, Teruki's grandfather sat before his wife's grave, reminiscing of the years past.

"Hm... I think I forgot something..."

–

As Teru finally managed to calm down, he adamantly refused to look at the spread of words across his ceiling. "Alright, time to call the old geezer. If that pen was haunted, he probably would know what to do." Grasping his phone tightly, he dialed the number and hoped to the heavens that the old man would actually answer this time and that the connection would hold.

"Hello ?", came the raspy voice.

"Yo Gramps."

"Ah Teruki, can I help you with something?"

Teru fidgeted, sweat collecting on his brow. _It's now or never._

"I lost one of the pens you gave and now I think I'm haunted." His voice was even and calm, his own attempt at ignoring his blatant panic.

"What."

"Yep."

"Are you serious."

"Deadly."

The silence on the other end was foreboding and Teru gripped the phone even tighter, almost fearing for his life. He knew the old man could be scary when and if he wanted to be. His neighbors could attest to that.

The silence dragged for a few more moments before he heard a muffled laugh.

"Are you... actually laughing right now?"

Another muffled snicker. "Possibly."

"I could be in danger and you're now laughing at your only grandson."

More silence.

"You're a terrible role model."

"At least I'm not the one who lost a precious family heirloom."

Teru winced and conceded him that. He thought it was just normal pens though, not something that had been passed down generations.

"You didn't even mention that! I was using it during Uni to write stuff down!", Teru argued. His grandfather guffawed. "For simple work?!" His voice was loud and very impressive for a seventy year old man. "That pen is magic! Why would you ever use that for work?!"

"MAGIC?! What have you been smoking, you geezer?!"

"HAVE YOU NOT BEEN LISTENING TO WHAT I KEEP TELLING YOU ABOUT OUR FAMILY?"

The phone call escalated into a full on screaming match in a matter of moments. As Teru pressed the end call button on the screen, he heaved and massaged his temple. A major headache was in his future.

 _So. Magic Pens. My ancient family was supposedly a bunch of spies and used this to silently communicate over distances. And they don't use paper. Just the nearest fucking surface. And only the holder of the pen will see the writing. Are you shitting me?_

Thus began Hanazawa Teruki's reluctant mission to regain his lost magical pen.


	2. The Awakening

Even as Teru awoke, his head throbbed, very real evidence of what had happened the previous night. Lying on his bed, he spread his arms wide and stared at the ceiling suspiciously. He was instantly on edge – when would the next scribbles appear? Still eyeing the blank canvas of a ceiling, he slowly got up, a mix of consternation and determination set on his face. Teru would never admit it, but it looked very close to constipation.

 _How in all hells am I going to find that blasted pen..._ While he didn't mind the idea of random messages per say, he was not going to go through life with either his grandfather, and probably ancestors as well, on his back, nor would he be able to simply give up the remaining pen. It wouldn't do to give up; Teru _never_ gave up.

Stretching, he slowly prepared for his long and arduous quest, mind already forming and dismissing ideas. As he left his apartment and took the subway to the university campus, Teru didn't even spend a thought on the abandoned piece of paper on which he had scrawled the girls' phone numbers.

 _Where did I lose it again..._

–

It was in the middle of his 'Introduction to Homicide Law' that Teru had an epiphany. " _I got it!_ " The words jumbled out of his mouth before he could stop himself, interrupting the lecturer who had been introducing the topic of the next exam. Teru flushed, embarrassment causing him to falter. The entire class had turned at his very vocal interruption. The haggard Mogami-sensei frowned deeply and continued, "Do you have something to tell the class, Hanazawa-kun?" Teru swore he could see vague murderous intent in his lecturer's eyes and shook his head faster than he thought he could. "Uh, no, sir. I'm just not feeling very well. May I be excused?" The class tittered and Teru groaned internally. _It's going to take some explaining to get people to forget that little outburst._ Ears glowing bright red, he fidgeted in his seat, hesitantly faking a cough.

Mogami-sensei visibly rolled his eyes and motioned for Teru to leave. "Can't have you dieing here, so go ahead." Teru left the classroom very quickly, squirming under the watchful lecturer's gaze. What were the rumors about him again? Every day, Teru heard a new one; Mogami-sensei was supposedly not even his real name, he was actually a drug dealer, had killed the previous law professor, killed _himself_ to _become_ the law professor, all that jazz. However, Teru definitely made to stay on his good side.

As he speeded through the halls, set on a specific destination, Teru remembered that he thankfully had lost the pen on campus, specifically after he had taken down all those girls' numbers. He thought longingly of the slip of paper, not even sure where it was anymore. _Ah well, there's more fish in the sea._ Finally coming to a halt before the Literature lecture theater, Teru actually stopped to take in whether there an ongoing class or not. He couldn't just burst in, even if it was him doing it. He wasn't cool enough to make even _that_ not uncool. Ears pressed to the door, he couldn't hear anything but silence. He leaned further in, trying to hear even the smallest of sounds. He wasn't at the top of his game right now, ok, and very much preferred to not meet anyone while looking for a stupid pen.

Just as Teru leaned in, head sideways, the door opened and almost as if in slow motion, he continued his descent, his life flashing before his eyes.

 _I will never live this down._

His face met the ground at a higher speed than what he thought possible. Lying still for a moment, wishing to sink into said ground, Teru remained absolutely silent. Maybe if the person who opened the door thought he was dead, went to go call the police, Teru could take that chance to _get the fuck outta here._

But no, Teru opened his eyes to the sight of a hand reaching down.

"Uhm, are you, uh, ok?"

The voice was quiet, hesitant and just a touch hoarse, as if the speaker didn't speak loudly very often. The words however were sincere and Teru sighed roughly, accepting the impending death of his reputation. What would people think of him now that he'd made such a fool of himself? "I'm great, thank you for asking" He mumbled. Teru slowly pushed himself up and ignored the hand offered, vaguely recognizing the face of the person. Straightening out, he glanced around conspicuously. _Phew, there's no one else here._

"So, what will it take for you to stay quiet about this incident?"

Teru stated the question with casual arrogance, as if he hadn't just fallen through a door way. He dusted off his blazer, not even looking at the other guy/

"Money? Some girl's phone number?

He honestly just wanted to get this over with. He had shit to do, places to be, _goddamn magical pens to find._

"Popularity?"

At his last question, Teru heard a soft squeak. Eyes snapping up to the source of the sound, he looked at his "savior" for the first time. A simple, yet thin guys stood before him, no emotions visible on his face except for shining black eyes, shadowed by the straight bangs. Teru almost snorted at the old school look.

"...You can make me popular?"

There it was again, that soft voice. Teru froze at the question. Had he actually said that? Taking one look at the bright eyed kid, he coughed and set an arrogant grin on his face.

"Of course, kid. Who do you think I am?"

The question was of course rhetorical, as Teru assumed everyone had heard of him before.

"Actually, I don't know." The guy said without a hint of shame.

The statement hit Teru like a stack of bricks. "You don't know! I am Hanazawa Teru!"

The guy's facial expression didn't change. He started again, "So, you can help me become popular?"

Dragging his palm across his face, Teru nodded unconvincingly. If even this kind of a low level student didn't know him, what kind of reputation did he actually have? Determination, the type that had dimmed since the morning, flared to life again. He was going to make this kid a living, breathing _social butterfly so help me god._

"What's your name in anyway?" Teru asked dismissively, already walking along the tables in the lecture theater and trying to spot the lost enchanted piece of stationary.

"It's Kageyama Shigeo, Hanazawa-kun."

That rang a bell. "Ah, that kid Reigen-sensei called Mob." Teru asked while he looked underneath the desks. A flush spread across the kid's face, embarrassment obvious. "From Literature class, right? We have a class together and you still didn't know who I was? Tch." Teru asked, vaguely annoyed. "Anyway, Kageyama, I'll help if you do one thing for me – don't tell _anyone_ what happened here, ok? If they ask you how you know me just say, uh, that I decided to be your friend, ok?"

Teru would do _anything_ to forget his clumsiness.

Kageyama shrugged, obviously not seeing the harm in that. "So when is the first class, Hanazawa-kun?" Teru straightened, annoyed at not finding the pen and paused for a moment. "You know what? Let's start now." He stated triumphantly, heading out the room. "Follow me Kageyama!"

"But- I, I still have work to do!"

"Is your work more important than your dreams, Kageyama? We also have work to do! Now come!"

Teru was already out the door, waving his hand and motioning for Kageyama to follow.

"Sorry master..." Came the soft whisper as the black haired young man followed Teru, into what would affectionately and sarcastically be known as 'the awakening'.

–

Reigen Arataka pranced into the lecture theater, already spouting a steady stream of words. "- can continue to publish, Mob! Isn't this a great opportunity!" He laughed heartily, not yet noticing the absence of his disciple, and sometimes friend, Kageyama Shigeo. As his outburst was met with continued silence, Reigen took in the room. The wind whistled through a small crack in the window, providing the perfect backdrop for his desolation. Whipping his phone out, small beeps were heard as the lecturer and mentor dialed the number of one 'Mob".

Pinching his nose bridge, Reigen sighed in annoyance as the call directly went to voice mail.

"Seriously Mob? This is the time you decide to finally spend your youth on something not work related?"

–

Teru watched in satisfaction as the hair dresser snipped away at the kid's hair. The noticable apprehension was a welcome change to the otherwise unemotional face and Teru snickered softly. "Is this really necessary, Hanazawa-kun?" Kageyama asked, his voice calm. "Why yes, my disciple, it is." Teru answered smugly, sharing glances with the scissor-wielding stylist. "We're of course not going to change anything drastically, just make it a little more... presentable." The stylist continued, adding the finishing touches. She'd simply cut away excess hair to make the haircut less old fashioned and more of a statement.

"And done!"

Teru watched Kageyama smile shyly at the stylist, already thanking her. _Shouldn't he look at the haircut first?_ He laughed quietly and waited for the kid to appreciate his magnificent guidance. "This is the first step, disciple. You have more to go before you can be as cool as me." Teru smirked, running his hand through his own hair and letting the spikes fall naturally into place. Of course, he didn't have to put much effort into his appearance – he was after all born with superior looks and taste. Posing and awaiting some kind of thanks, Teru only heard Kageyama mumble softly. The kid was softly running his hands through his own hair with a small smile. _Huh._

Annoyed at not being paid attention to, Teru huffed and crossed his arms. He glanced around the salon, thankful for the lack of any cursive writing. He did not want to be reminded of the looming problem. Shaking his head, Teru watched as Kageyama paid for his hair cut, a sunny disposition creeping into his appearance.

They continued from store to store, spending probably all of Kageyama's allowance – _sure you can afford all that?_ \- and slowly strolling towards the subway station. Teru's attention was everywhere except on the conversation his companion tried to hold, gazing after some girls who walked by. He was still thinking about going after them when a tug on his sleeve brought him back to reality.

"-helping me?"

Teru blinked, completely lost.

"Why are you helping me, Hanazawa-kun?" The question was stated in a clear, yet precise manner. The consonants were crisp and the intonation smooth. Teru vaguely wondered why Kageyama's public speaking seemed so poor. The black haired kid continued, "You could have simply forced me to stay silent, or ignored me. People wouldn't have believed my word against yours." Teru stopped mid step. _He's right. Why did I offer my expertise?_ Kageyama looked him straight in the eyes, no blame present; only pure curiosity and a glimmer of gratitude.

"I guess I see this as my pet project." _And a way to momentarily ignore my other problems._

"Nothing personal."

A rueful look passed over Kageyama's face so quickly that Teru thought he must have imagined it. "However, I don't do things in half measures, Kageyama. If I decide on something, it's going to be perfect." Teru was confident. Well, he always was, but this time he felt something more. "You're going to be one popular guy once I'm finished with you. On top of the rankings. But, after me of course."

The statement unlocked a small laugh out of Kageyama and Teru couldn't help but smirk at the sound.

–

Teru pulled off his clothes, ready for a long soak in the bathtub. He was ready to just relax and forget some of his worries – _I didn't actually make any progress on finding the mythical ballpoint_ – and think about it tomorrow.

As he slipped into the water, he sighed gratefully, already feeling the steam and heat loosen the tension in his muscles. Teru was so relaxed that he didn't even startle as words again appeared on his ceilings. He watched the sweeps and curls slowly transform into words and finally, for the first time, saw the beauty in them.

 _Whoever has that pen is one hell of a writer._

Teru sat there for hours, watching the unfolding story appear on every available surface. The words themselves were beautiful, drawing out visions of hearts lost and lives found, every story leaving a lingering presence behind. He could feel the kindness behind the words and wondered if that also was a part of the pen's powers. Slipping his head lower into the water, Teru continued until his mouth was covered.

 _Beautiful._


End file.
